No prior experience - M7 MBA to REPE or RE Development?

What’s the best way to go about going from no experience to a real estate development career or associate job at a REPE? I’m prior military so tons of project management experience but no finance or niche RE knowledge. I’m admitted to an M7 and trying to prep and network now. Any advice? Target geography is Austin or Dallas - residential or mixed use

108 WSO Academy Real Estate Session Reviews: 4.91/5

Class of '29 Sep 2026 Cohort

5.00/5

Real Estate Career Roadmap (optional)

“Nick was extremely informative and gave me a lot of solid and practical advice. He answered all of my questions clearly and thoughtfully. I really appreciated that he gave me an actionable plan for how to approach recruiting and developing my career in general. He was very open about sharing his own experiences. He also gave me helpful perspective on how to differentiate myself during the recruiting process and make my conversations with professionals more meaningful. I feel like I have a clearer understanding of what I should focus on and concrete next steps. This was overall a helpful and valuable conversation. ”

Class of '28 Aug 2026 Cohort

5.00/5

Real Estate Mock Interview

“Nick was fantastic. He didn’t just glance at my resume and give me generic advice—he explained exactly why it wasn’t telling the story I wanted it to tell, then helped me figure out how to fix it. He pushed me to be more intentional about how I talk about my experience and gave me concrete steps to prepare for interviews, from tailoring my resume to practicing financial modeling. I also appreciated how candid he was. When I asked about real estate capital markets versus sales and trading, he gave me his honest opinion while being clear about his own perspective. He shared interview guides, answered all my questions, and offered to do a more detailed mock interview if I move forward with JLL. I left with a lot of work to do, but also a much clearer idea of how to do it. I’d absolutely recommend talking with Nick.”

See All 11,635 WSO Academy Reviews

2 Comments

momnpopshop

IB

3y

Just network. Send emails with "XXFirm Associate Interest" in the subject and explain that you're an MBA candidate at X school and would love to learn more about Person's experience at X firm.

Reply

Quote

Report

Other

Array

Colster2011

RE

3y

Eligendi eius eaque enim sapiente aperiam at numquam. Occaecati sunt rerum in illum. Assumenda nulla recusandae quod accusantium cum natus ullam.

Pariatur autem reiciendis esse et ut consequatur non. Tenetur eaque et dolores amet fugit unde. Ut aut doloremque minus voluptatem. Dignissimos aut exercitationem vel ut. Quia nobis repellat ut dolor voluptas.

Odio quis officia facilis id doloribus unde porro. Voluptates sit aut ut ipsam dignissimos adipisci dolores. Itaque praesentium sunt sed.

Reply

Quote

Report

Other

+32	Are Co-GP development structures successful?	12	5h
+19	How to move from Real Estate to Infrastructure?	14	23h
+18	Capital Formation/Capital Raising Roles Q	2	23h
+13	Multifamily Job Search Advice	3	2d
+9	Insurance company RE investments internship, how is it viewed?	3	3h
+5	TA Realty	2	1d
+3	What Are the Biggest Financial Challenges in Custom Home Construction?	1	4d
+3	UK Capital Raising Environment	1	2d

1	redever	99.2
2	BankonBanking	99.0
3	Secyh62	99.0
4	kanon	99.0
5	Betsy Massar	98.9
6	DrApeman	98.9
7	GameTheory	98.9
8	CompBanker	98.9
9	dosk17	98.9
10	Mimbs	98.8

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

No prior experience - M7 MBA to REPE or RE Development?

Score Breakdown

Feedback

Score Breakdown

Feedback

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

No prior experience - M7 MBA to REPE or RE Development?

See All Comments - 100% Free

Trending Content - Real Estate Forum